Note: When
the right side of the Moon is illuminated, the Moon is increasing
or waxing. When the left side illuminated, the Moon is decreasing
or waning. (Of course, this only works in the Northern Hemisphere.
In the Southern Hemisphere the effect is just the opposite!)

The
New Moon can be thought of as a no Moon! Its sunlit side is facing
away from Earth toward the Sun. The side that is facing Earth is not
getting any sunlight, leaving it dark and invisible to us ... no Moon
to see! A New Moon lies between the Sun and Earth. Helpful
Image + DescriptionBTW: The only time a New Moon
can be seen is during a solar eclipse, when it passes directly in front
of the Sun, visibly showing off part or all of its entire dark disk.

Note: For
those living in San Francisco this New Moon takes place overhead
46 minutes after high noon. The Sun, New Moon and planets
are located in
the same constellations for other parts of
the world; these constellations, in differing time zones, lie in
a different location above or below the horizon.

Reflections
~ New Moon

With
every New
Moon our soul goes into meditation and aligns with the inspiration
of the Nirmanakayas;
a potential is enlivened and a seed of consciousness is formed
deep within. Take some time to create a sacred space. A new cycle
is beginning.

The
New Moon and Sun, lie in the midst of a planetary stream flowing through
three watery constellations of the great Celestial
Sea — Capricornus the Sea Goat,
Aquarius the Water Bearer and Pisces the Fishes.

In
addition, the constellation of the Phoenix rises out of Eridanus, the
river of life, both (not shown in the map above) lie to the south,
deep in the Celestial Sea. Helpful Maps: 1, 2 Both
align with the New Moon and Sun.

The
New Moon of March 4, 2011 occurs in sidereal Aquarius and conjoins
Achernar of Eridanus, the river of life; and Ankaa of the Phoenix.
[Helpful
Image] This lunar cycle marks a completion of a leg of life,
and an emergence into a vaster body of consciousness, much like a
river's
delta
opens into an ocean. Boundaries dissolve as our dreams and visions
shift
and swirl us into a greater universality and potentiality of being.
This lunar cycle is packed full of opportunities for emotional
growth, personal empowerment, and spiritual expansion. Nick
Fiorenza:3/4/11
Lunar Cycle

The
New Moon has
humanity flowing into a great sea of consciousness. During this lunar
cycle imagine the planetary river and Celestial Sea streaming forth
energies
that
help
us emerge into something new and wholesome, while we move
with the seemingly
chaotic currents and waves of our times.

Now is the time for divination.
Invoke the images that melt open your heart.
Now is the time for divination.
Invoke the images that fuse you with Spirit.
Now is the time for divination.
Invoke the faith that turns loaves to fishes.
Vision, inspiration and hope are the manna of this new moon.

Pisces
Global MeditationThis
meditation, which culminates at the
Full Moon during Pisces, begins with this New Moon.
(The Full Moon occurs at the end of Pisces, 17
hours
before the March Equinox when the sign of Aries begins.)

March
5-7,
Saturday-Monday, at dusk above the western horizon, the youngest Crescent
Moons make their appearance with difficult to see Mercury
and brilliant
Jupiter. Sky&Telescope
Map/Text More maps: 3/5
Map, 3/6
Map, 3/7
Map

Approximate
Moonsets: 7:15pm, 8:15pm, 9:15pm

Note:Uranus
lies invisibly between Mercury and Jupiter.
To see the location of Uranus review the New Moon map above.BTW: Jupiter
is sinking toward the horizon, while Mercury is rising above it. Watch
them move closer together as the days unfold. They are at their closest
March 15.

Open
to new visions for the greater whole. Envision well-being for all.

Explanation: About 1,300 images from the Lunar
Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft's wide angle camera were
used to compose this
spectacular view of a familiar face - the lunar nearside. But
why is there a lunar
nearside? The Moon rotates on its axis and orbits the Earth
at the same rate, about once every 28 days. Tidally
locked in this configuration,
the synchronous rotation always keeps one side, the nearside,
facing Earth. As a result, featured in remarkable detail in
the full resolution
mosaic, the smooth, dark, lunar maria (actually lava-flooded
impact basins), and rugged highlands, are well-known to earthbound
skygazers. ... The LRO images used to construct
the mosaic were
recorded over a two week period last December [2010]. Astronomy
Picture of the Day 3/3/11 ~ Current
Astronomy Picture of the Day

To find your favorite mare or large crater,
just
slide your cursor over this APOD
Image; its web page gives APOD's full explanation and all the
links for the "Lunar Nearside" mosaic shown above.

Extra
Full
Moon ~ Perigee-Syzygy Event

The Perigee

The
Moon's orbit is not a perfect circle. Every 27.55 days, the Moon swings
closer to Earth and then loops farther
away in an unending cycle of perigees
and apogees. Helpful
Image The
Full Moon of Saturday, March 19, is at
rare perigee, the
closest lunar approach for the month, for the year and
in 18 years! Note: The Moon is
exactly Full less than an hour from perigee.

The
Moon averages about 240,000 miles from Earth but can get as close
as 221,441 miles and as far as 252,723 miles. That's a range of over
30,000 miles.

Now
next Saturday the 19th you'll be treated to the closest and biggest
full Moon of 2011. It's not only the closest full Moon for this
year but it will be the closest and biggest full Moon since March
8, 1993!
Plus it will be the biggest full Moon you'll see for the next
five years, until November 14, 2016. Star
Gazer: 2011 Script 3/7-15

The
biggest Full Moons of the year are 14% bigger and 30% brighter than
lesser
Full Moons. Helpful
Image A perigee Moon creates higher than usual "perigean
tides".
However, according to NASA,
these are only a few centimeters (an inch or so) higher than usual.
Local geography can increase the effect
to about 15 centimeters (six inches). Richard
Nolle has more to say about
the potential effects of perigee SuperMoons in "The Sysygy" section
below.

When
three or more astronomical bodies, in a gravitational system, form
a roughly straight line, we have a syzygy (siz-i-jee).
The March 19 "Extra" Full Moon, as with all Full Moons,
forms a straight line
with our Earth and Sun (Moon-Earth-Sun), a syzygy.

Richard
Nolle calls the perigee-syzygy Full Moon a SuperMoon, which has
the potential to stir up powerful tides in the Earth's atmosphere,
crust and oceans.

SuperMoon
is a word I coined in a 1979 ... describing a new or
full moon which occurs with the Moon at or near (within 90% of) its
closest approach to Earth in a given orbit. ...
At any new or full moon, Earth and Moon and Sun are all in a line:
Earth is in the middle in the full moon alignment, while the new
moon happens with Moon in the middle. This coming together in an
alignment is technically termed a syzygy. ... when the Moon is in
its perigee, or closest approach to Earth. Astronomers call this
very
special alignment a perigee-syzygy. I
call it a SuperMoon – which is a whole lot easier on the tongue.

...
From extreme coastal tides to severe storms to powerful earthquakes
and volcanic eruptions, the entire natural world surges
and spasms under the sway of the SuperMoon alignment - within
three days either way of the exact syzygy, as a general rule.
... For most of us, the geocosmic risk raised by SuperMoon alignments
will pass with little notice in our immediate vicinity. ...
A SuperMoon is planetary in scale, being a special alignment
of Earth, Sun and Moon. ... it’s planetary
in scope, in the sense that there's no place on Earth not subject
to the tidal force of the perigee-syzygy. Of course, earthquakes
and volcanic eruptions don't go wandering all over the planet.
They happen in (mostly) predictable locations, like the infamous "Ring
of Fire" around the Pacific plate.

Examples
of the SuperMoon connection with major storms and seismic
events abound [Nolle provides examples]. ... I’m far from
the first person in history to notice the connection between
lunar
perigee-syzygy
and powerful
tides
stirring up Earth’s atmosphere, crust and oceans. Richard
Nolle's Full Article: SuperMoon What It Is, What It Means

The
March 19 perigee-syzygy Full Moon
line-up is grander, extending outward to include Saturn and Jupiter
(Saturn, Moon, Earth, Sun,
Jupiter).
This
solar
system view for the exact time of the Full Moon shows Saturn
(yellow) and the Earth (blue) on the left side of the Sun and Jupiter
(gold) on the right side of the Sun. This 3/19-20
Full Moon Map shows the Moon in relation to Saturn;
they are in exact conjunctionMarch
20 at 12:27pm PDT (19:27
UT).

Saturn
and Jupiter on opposites sides of the Sun play an important role
in
the geocosmic
effects
experienced
on
Earth.

Scientists
have noted that when Jupiter and Saturn are aligned on the
same side of the Sun, the solar maximum (the period when we have
the
most sunspots and flares) is at its weakest; when they are
on opposite sides of the Sun the solar maximum is at its strongest. Doomsday, The Mayan Calendar and 2012

Jupiter
and Saturn are now on the opposite sides of the Sun and the
Sun is in its solar maximum cycle. Perhaps the gravitational
pull of these two opposing massive planets disturbs the quietude
of the Sun causing
sunspots,
solar flares and coronal
mass ejections (CME's). Solar
Glossary The
Sun in its active cycle increases the likelihood of power grid overloads/outages
and satellite
disruption [*].
Solar maximum may even increase earthquake/volcanic activity and
emotional upsets, however this concept is not well understood nor
agreed upon. Spaceweather.com
describes the
solar
activity of March 9-10 preceding Japan's March 11 quake/tsunami.

Use
Solar
System Live to view the entire solar system or just the inner
planets for any date/time.

In
Summary

The
5 celestial body syzygy (Saturn, Moon, Earth, Sun,
Jupiter) occurring during this perigee Full
Moon cycle is likely to stir
up our Earth’s atmosphere, crust and oceans, and even human
emotions. During this time be receptive to your inner guidance,
fill up with
the
higher
vibrations of gratitude and love,
radiate
healing energies into our world.

Lunar
Cycle Reminders ..."Now
is the time for divination. Invoke the images that melt open your
heart. Invoke the images that fuse you with Spirit. Invoke the faith
that turns loaves to fishes." Jacqueline
Lasahn "This lunar cycle is packed
full of opportunities for emotional growth, personal empowerment, and
spiritual expansion." Nick
Fiorenza:3/4/11
Lunar Cycle We are flowing into a great sea of
consciousness. As we move with the seemingly chaotic currents and waves
of our times, seek
out
and
receive and radiate
the
energies that are streaming forth to help humanity emerge
into something new and wholesome.

March
20,
Sunday, is the Spring
Equinox for the Northern Hemisphere.
The Sun conjoins Uranus today, with an exact conjunction occurring
March 21, Monday, 5:25am PDT (12:25 UT).

The
March 20 equinox
occurs the day after the Full Moon, with the Sun conjoining
Uranus ... stimulating dynamic radical action to break
away from the conforming bounds of the past. ... The
Sun-Uranus alignment also marks the mid-point of vision and
realization
in our current
370-day Earth-Uranus synodic cycle [*], which began on
September 21, 2010, bring[ing] revelations about the radical
changes
we are making and need to make in our lives. Nick
Fiorenza:3/4/11
Lunar Cycle

March
22,
Tuesday, Mercury is at its greatest distance from the setting
Sun, giving its best
performance of 2011. Mercury sets just before 9:00pm and Jupiter
sets near 8:15pm. 3/22
7:30pm MapWhat
does this messenger of the gods have to say to you?